Almost three-quarters of a million people hunt in New York. Now that the season is in full swing, one organization is asking hunters also keep in mind less fortunate families even while they provide for their own.

According to the Venison Donation Coalition of New York, the average deer yields 40 pounds of ground meat. That one deer can feed 160 people a nutritious meal.

“I think we’re instructed to share our best or give part of our first harvest,” Greg Fuerst, coordinator for the statewide Venison Donation Program, said, “and when you do that as a hunter – give away your first deer then worry about family later – the feeling is overwhelming. It’s very, very rewarding.”

Hunters can drop off legally-tagged, properly field-dressed deer at two Genesee County locations. Those processors then ground the venison, freeze it and call food banks, like Foodlink in Rochester, to add it to the menu.

Fuerst says it’s convenient and necessary.

“As the deer herd goes up and down the DEC issues varying numbers of doe permits every year to control the herd. That’s where the excess tags and the excess deer might come from. Hunters use it for their families, then the excess deer that need to be harvested to properly manage the herd get donated through the venison donation program. The average family probably uses one or two deer per year, so if he’s able to harvest five or six out of those nine tags he’s entitled to, he has an outlet.”

Hunters in Genesee County have donated about 4-500 hundred pounds of meat.

Fuerst says venison is a great option for food banks because it’s low in fat and cholesterol. Plus having it in ground form makes it easy to create many versatile meals.

Call ahead to local processors Back To Nature taxidermy in Oakfield and M&M Meats in Batavia. There’s plenty of information at venisondonation.org.

Corfu Domestic Altercation Ends with Arrest in Amherst

An Akron man is behind bars on $30,000 bail after an reported domestic altercation in Corfu spilled into Erie County.

Patrick Krieger, 23, was arrested in Amherst this morning after a brief foot chase involving several law enforcement agencies.

Krieger was charged with burglary, criminal contempt and menacing by displaying a weapon. The incident occurred at 7 this morning on East Main Street in Corfu.

Krieger was turned back over to the Genesee County sheriff’s office and committed to the county jail.

WBEN-AM in Buffalo reports Amherst Police say it was a domestic incident.

Sheriff's Investigating Robberies on Back-to-Back Nights

The Genesee County Sheriff’s Office is investigating two armed robberies within the last two days.

Yesterday at 3 a.m. a white male described as 5-foot-5 wearing a black jacket and a bandana approached a clerk at the Best Western Inn on Park Road in Batavia. He displayed a handgun and demanded cash.

The suspect fled on foot toward Park Road just before deputies arrived just seconds later. They ran a K-9 track but lost it in the City of Batavia.

Then at 2 o’clock this morning, the Sheriff’s Office says it received a report of a white male who entered the 7-Eleven in Oakfield and robbed the clerk at gunpoint. The suspect was described as 5-foot-2 to 5-foot-6 having a small build. He was wearing a brown hooded sweatshirt or jacket and bandana with a baseball cap and was last seen running down Coe Avenue. There was a car in the area which arrived about three minutes after the call.

“There would appear to be some similarities described by the victims of the perpetrator,” Chief Deputy Jerome Brewster said. “It looks like it’s a small person, probably 5-foot-2 to 5-foot-5 and somewhere in the area of 170 to 200 lbs.”

No injuries were reported.

The Sheriff’s Office is asking for the public’s help in the ongoing investigation. Call them if you have any information at 343-5000.